Apprentice Plumber

The Block and House rules made tradies look like suntan blokes installing taps for fun. The reality is closer to a 19-year-old in a floral shirt, fixing the burst hot water line that lets a family of four shower again before work. The Australian Certificate III, in plumbing, is 58 units, 43 core, and 15 specialty. It is the heaviest certificate III trade qualification in the system. The apprenticeship runs four years. About 35 weeks is spent at TAFE, in blocks, learning to read isometric drawings, calculate full ratios on drainage pipes, and braise copper without setting the wall on fire. The other three years and change are on site, learning the craft, cutting access holes in plasterboard, clearing blocked sewer lines, rooting a new hot water service through a roof cavity.